Iraqi aircraft strike militants near besieged town

KIRKUK, Iraq : Iraqi aircraft carried out strikes targeting militants in the Amerli area on Friday as security forces ready a major assault to break through to the besieged Shiite Turkmen town, officers said.Amerli has been surrounded by militants for more than two months, and its residents face severe shortages of food and water, as well as the threat of the militants.Iraqi aircraft struck militants in villages in the Amerli area, said Colonel Mustafa al-Bayati, while Staff Lieutenant General Abdulamir al-Zaidi said an Mi-35 helicopter targeted militants near Jabal Hamreen, to its south.Militia forces have been massing north of Amerli, while Iraqi troops push towards the town from the south in a major operation to free it. Residents of Amerli are in grave danger both because of their Shiite faith, which militants consider heresy, and their resistance to the militants, which has drawn harsh retribution elsewhere.Iraqi forces retook several villages on the way to Amerli on Thursday, as part of a major operation to free the town.And officials say that Washington is weighing both aid drops and air strikes to help the town.“It could be a humanitarian operation. It could be a military operation. It could be both,” a US defence official said on condition of anonymity.